Goddess Osun the Yoruba Goddess of Love, Fertility,Wealth and Abundance and the Power of Prayer.

As a daughter of Osun I have profound affinity for this Goddess and it was only fitting for me to speak of her first in my series about the pantheon of Orisa.

I have realized that the Orisa’s reveal themselves in different ways to everyone these are some of the most common traits traditionally used to describe her.

?hun is beneficent, generous and very kind. She does, however, have a horrific temper, one which she seldom ever loses but which causes untold destruction whenever she does. Oshun is said to have gone to a drum festival one day and to have fallen in love with the king-dancer Shango, God of lightning & thunder. Since that day, Shango has been married to Oba, Oya, and Oshun, though Oshun is said to be considered his principal wife.

She is associated with the color yellow, metal brass, peacock feathers, mirrors, honey and anything of beauty, her principal day of the week is Friday and the number she is associated with is 5.

According to the Yoruba elders, Oshun is the “unseen mother present at every gathering”, because Oshun is the Yoruba understanding of the cosmological forces of water, moisture, and attraction. Therefore, she is believed to be omnipresent and omnipotent. Her power is represented in another Yoruba proverb which reminds us that “no one is an enemy to water” and therefore everyone has need of and should respect and revere Oshun, as well as her followers.

Oshun is the force of harmony. Harmony which we see as beauty, feel as love, and experience as ecstasy. She, according to the ancients, was the only female Irunmole amongst the original 16 sent from the spirit realm to create the world. As such, she is revered as “Yeye” – the great mother of us all. When the male Irunmole attempted to subjegate Oshun due to her femaleness, she removed her divine energy (called ase by the Yoruba) from the project of creating the world and all subsequent efforts at creation were in vain. It was not until visiting with the Supreme Being, Olodumare and begging for Osun’s pardon (as advised by Olodumare) that the world could continue to be created. But not before Osun had given birth to a son. This son became Elegba, (Esu) the great conduit of ase in the Universe, the eternal and infernal trickster.

Oshun is known as Iyalode, the “(explicitly female) chief of the market.” She is also known as Laketi, she who has ears, because of how quickly and effectively she answers prayers. When she possesses her followers, she dances, flirts and then weeps- because no one can love her enough and the world is not as beautiful as she knows it could be.
In Cuban Lukumi tradition, Oshun has many roads, or manifestations. Some of these include:

Oshun Ibu Ikole — Oshun the Vulture. This Oshun is associated with Witches (Aje), and her symbols are the vulture, and the mortar and pestle (both of which are symbols of witchcraft). In Cuba, her mythology says that this Oshun saved the world by flying the prayers of the dying world up to the Sun (Orun), where Olodumare lives. In West Africa, however, this myth is attributed to Yemoja.

Oshun Ibu Anya — Oshun of the Drums. This Oshun is the patron of dancing and the Anya drums. She is said to dance ceaselessly to forget her troubles.

Oshun Ibu Yumu — This Oshun is the eldest Oshun. She sits at the bottom of the river, knitting.

Oshun Ibu D’Oko — Oshun, the wife of Orisha Oko. This Oshun is pictured as a furrow to be plowed and a giant vulva, while her husband Orisha Oko is a farmer and pictured as a giant phallus. This is one of Oshun’s most obviously procreative manifestations.

Oshun Ololodi — Oshun, the diviner. This Oshun is the wife of Orunmila, the Orisha of Ifa divination.

Oshun Ibu Akuaro — Oshun, the Quail. The children of this manifestation of Oshun are said to be very nervous people.

In my life I have found that invoking the power of Osun has brought to me the gift of heart felt prayer, not being afraid to ask for what it is that I need and want in my life and the munificent mother answers prayers with the swiftest response….abundance through prayer. Below you can find prayer to Osun. Blessings and Light!